A Black Widow Encounter


Remember last week when I wrote that it is important to always pay attention in the garden because you never know what you will encounter (such as my cute toad)? Well, here is another reason...


We were cleaning up our hill garden which is filled with rocks remaining from the construction of our house when my son came upon this black widow spider. It can be rather alarming when one comes across a venomous anything. But, it is a very beautiful looking arachnid don't you think?


Fortunately, my children have been well educated on the venomous species that could be encountered in our garden and know exactly what to do....yell for mom...to get her camera!


Note: I have been having some fun playing around with the new features in Picasa and applied some to these photos of the Black Widow Spider. For more info on this beautiful spider check out my post here.

Comments

  1. I saw one in my garage last summer and just carefully walked on by. I worry one will crawl into my garden clogs and bite my feet. Great pix! I keep my distance from these guys!

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    1. We always check our shoes that are left outside or in the garage. You never know what may crawl in there!

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  2. I have a very healthy respect for all venomous creatures though I doubt that I'm careful enough in the garden. Very nice photos of this beauty!

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  3. Glad to see you have trained your children well, run for the camera! hahahaa good one.
    Great photos of the spider, I always think red hourglass, but that is on the underside....hard to see unless the spider does tricks. (roll over, play dead, beg, etc.) I had a big snake in the road this Friday..that was fun. It wasn't poisonous, but I am always on the lookout for all sorts of critters, especially around my rocks.
    What do you think of Picasa's new gadgets? I have played a little bit with them.

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    1. Janet, We have seen black widows solid black and with spots so definitely need to look at the underside to confirm. I turned this spider over with a stick so that we could look at the underside. I am sure she didn't appreciate it! Normally I don't alter my photos; sometimes adjusting for lighting but I do like the effect some of these new gadgets apply. It is always fun to play around with new toys!

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  4. I have never encountered one luckily, but you got some nice images of it. Great your kids know what to do... call mom.

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  5. Great shot, Karin. I don't know that I would have been as calm! Spiders give me the heebeejeebies.

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  6. Fabulous shots Karin..never saw one when I lived in AZ thankfully..

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  7. We have lots of Black Widows here too. A female lived at the top of the underside of our well cover last summer. And I have to be careful uprighting water troughs in summer if they've been turned over for a few days when we rotate pastures. They love rocks and leaf litter! You've captured their ominous elegance beautifully.

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  8. PS Love your new header shot too. Gorgeous!

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  9. Beautiful critter. Kudos to your kids for respecting Nature, and to you for teaching them that.

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  10. I never appreciated just how many different species of Latrodectus there are. Ours here are rather drab on the dorsal surface, so the red markings on the dorsal surface of yours stand out in comparison. I generally find these spiders to be quite shy. I find them a lot in the wood piles, and under the eves. We just concede to give each other plenty of space ;)

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    1. Usually when we come across them they try to scramble away. I have seen some without markings on their dorsal and other with the red markings but they can vary. Their shape usually gives them away.

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  11. These are some great pictures! We have them here, too. I've learned to always keep an eye out, although my husband can spot them much faster than I. We kill them - they multiply much too rapidly!

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  12. Yikes, I'm shivering in fear. Apparently they're in almost every state. I've never seen one, but it's good to have a reminder that they're lurking... Great shots!

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    1. I don't remember ever coming across one when we lived up north. I think they are more common in the southern region. We have come across many over the years here. We always have to be careful moving anything that is stacked...rocks, logs, etc.

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  13. Nice photos of a formidable creature. I've seen a few but not too many. I know just what you mean about it being both alarming and extremely cool. After seeing the first one, I talked about it so much that my husband finally quipped, "it might not freak you out so much if you talked about it less."

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One of my favorite things about blogging is the conversation with readers. Leave a comment and let's get talking. ~Karin

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